One or twice a week Scout poses 60 questions to a local who has made life in BC that much more interesting. They pick and choose which ones they’d prefer to answer, with a minimum response rate of 20. A Rorschach test, for sure…
Pino Posteraro is the current President of The Chef’s Table Society of BC, the 2008 Vancouver Magazine Chef of the Year, and the owner/chef of Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill in Yaletown.
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Scout Q&A
Three things about your neighbourhood that make you want to live there: Grand Boulevard area In North Vancouver: down to earth; friendly environment; still small reality; almost a village, like where I come from.
The thing that you eat that is bad for you that you will never stop eating: Pasta, Pasta, Pasta.
Default drink of choice: Champagne.
Drink you’ll never have again: Never say never.
The one place you’d move to without any regrets: My home town in the south of Italy.
Favourite wine varietal: Pinot Noir (old Burgundy to be more precise).
The person you can imitate: Depends on how much I had to drink (the only time I shall attempt).
One thing you’d like to change about Vancouver: The rain.
Bartender who could sell you anything: Stefano, an old school bartender from Toronto who has a “special gift”.
Cheap place for dinner: Pasparos Taverna on the North Shore, even if now the prices are up.
Book you’re reading: Cresci: The Art of Leavened Dough.
Last place traveled: New York.
Biggest fear: Dying young.
Cliche that you use too often: I do not have one.
Dead film actor you wish was still making pictures: Massimo Troisi.
Best sneaker in the world: The most comfortable ones (no particular brand).
Place in BC that you love escaping to: Ruby lake
Under what circumstances would you join the army: No circumstances.
Your paternal grandfather’s personal story: He died the same year I was born.
Best bar stool in the city: I do not have one.
Dumbest purchase ever: Must be one of my sports cars.
What are you proud of: My family.
The thing that makes you the angriest: Stupidity
Saddest thing about Vancouver: Hastings and Main.
Most challenging part of owning a business: Keeping the staff focused.
Best fine dining restaurant in the city: Tojo’s.
Your nickname growing up: Pino, which is short for Giuseppe.
Talent you wish you possessed: Be a great soccer player.
The trend you wish you never followed, but did: Fusion, when I was back from working in Asia.
Musical instrument you long to play: Guitar.
Sport you gave up: Soccer.
Foreign politician you most admire: Bill Clinton.
The game you’re best at: Cooking.
Best gallery in the city: Petley-Jones.
Somewhere within an hour of Vancouver that is worth checking out: Bearfoot Bistro (Whistler).
The number of fist fights you’ve been in: One that I can remember (his name was Pino as well).
The scariest situation you’ve ever been in: Losing my mother and my brother within 9 months of eachother.
Three things of no value that you will keep until you die: My old track pants; my old soccer shoes; my old guitar.
Local person you admire most: John Bishop; Hidekazu Tojo; Robert Clark.
The thing you’re ashamed of: Not spending enough time with my wife and kids.
Best concert experience ever: Avril Lavigne with my daughter.
Aspect of your personality you wish you could change: Being more patient.
How you waste time at work: Repeating myself.
The thing you wished people cared more about: Other people.
The dish you’re most proud of: The last one I’ve created.
The thing that makes you the most nervous: Flying and hospitals.
Town you were born in: Lago in the province of Cosenza in Calabria, Italy.
Old television shows you can tolerate re-runs of: Friends.
First memory: My mom.
Quality you admire most in yourself: Perseverance.
Album that first made you love music: My love for music came as a consequence of the Catholic study I attended.
Default junk food of choice: Chocolate chip cookies.
The career path you considered but never followed: Heart surgeon.
The one country that you have no interest in ever visiting: Kazakhstan.
Your top 3 films of all time: Cinema Paradiso, Il Postino, La Vita e’ Bella.
The first three things you do every morning: Espresso; soccer news online; respond to my emails.
The thing you’re addicted to: Pasta.
Biggest hope: A healthy life for my family and for all the kids of the world.
Luckiest part of your life: Being born into a family of six children. You really learn about life and love.
Favourite book as a child: The stories narrated by my mom. We could not afford many books.
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READ ALL SCOUT INTERVIEWS
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Related Video:
Senza Frontiere at Cioppino’s
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Related Photos:
Senza Frontiere at Cioppino’s
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No sucking up here when I say that he can come across as a little “rough around the edges”, but make no mistake, this is a talented man of the people and one “heavy duty dude”.
I’ve never seen him before (not being much of a foodie) but that is an amazing photo. There is so much character in that face. Cool background too. Where is that?
[…] Pino Posteraro: 60 Questions With The Chef of the Year […]
Hmmm!
Poor choice of words in my original post.
All I wanted to say is that with Pino what you see is what you get – there is never any ego to stroke – he is gemuine, a real person and that is rare in this business filled with prima donnas and divas.
I wish there more people like him – super talented and down to earth.
‘How you waste time at work: Repeating myself.’
best answer since Sebastian’s army enlisting answer